Less than 10K in Oakland County still without power

After a recent storm that brought 70 mph gusts to Oakland County and shook branches off trees, around 6,000 in southeast Michigan are still without power.

Randi Berris, DTE Energy spokeswoman, said that crews will continue to work around the clock until every customer has electricity services back on.

“Our goal is to have the vast majority of our customers’ power back by the end of the day Thursday,” said Berris. “We want all our customers to be able to celebrate the July 4 weekend with their families and with power.”

The initial storm that came early Tuesday morning knocked out power for 77,000 in Oakland County and another 153,000 residents throughout the region, including the Capitol building in Lansing.

The storm damage caused a power outage from Tuesday to mid-day Wednesday at Novi’s 52-1 District Court, but the court’s 65 employees remained on site to serve customers who showed up unaware that court was not in session. More than 300 individuals who came to the court were able to fulfill their legal obligations in the way of paying fines or fees, attending an informal hearing, meeting with a probation officer and other matters.

As of 4 p.m. Wednesday, DTE Energy representatives reported that more than 300 additional linemen from New York, Ohio, Indiana and Pennsylvania were in the field assisting in the restoration effort. The strong winds also downed over 800 power lines.